God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Colossians 1:27.

I pray that out of His glorious riches He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. Ephesians 3:16-17.

The path of the righteous is like the light of dawn, which shines brighter and brighter until full day. Proverbs 4:18 ESV.

Do you ever wish that revelation could be written so that it was easily understandable? Last night watching an episode of Frasier, they were having a party where they were supposed to wear something to show their heros, and Niles, the son, chose to look and have the mannerisms of his Dad, Marty. It was great fun until Niles was going to say how his two sons disappointed him. Then the real Marty stood and told him, “Don’t you put those words in my mouth!” Do we do that? Do we imagine how others think about us from the place of our own insecurities? Do we do that with Creator God – Father, Son, Spirit?

In our chapter, Zechariah 9, is the very prophecy of what happened when Jesus entered Jerusalem before His crucifixion (Matthew 21:1-11). And there is the prophecy of what would happen to the towns around Jerusalem then and the near future; and of the prophecy of when Jesus, the Son, returns at the end times. Prophecies from God are fulfilled in their time. V. 1-8 is about what will happen to Hadrak, Damascus, Hamath, Tyre and Sidon, Ashkelon, Gaza, Ashdod, the Philistines. And this…Those who are left will belong to our God and become a clan in Judah, and Ekron will be like the Jebusites. v. 7. In the notes below it said that the Jebusites were absorbed into Judah when David conquered them. And then…Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. v. 9. Yet to be…I will take away the chariots from Ephraim and the warhorses from Jerusalem, and the battle bow will be broken. He will proclaim peace to the nations. His rule will extend from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the earth. v. 10. And then to their time, As for you, because of the blood of My covenant with you, I will free your prisoners from the waterless pit. Return to your fortress, you prisoners of hope; even now I announce that I will restore twice as much to you. I will bend Judah as I bend My bow and fill it with Ephraim. I will rouse your sons, Zion, against your sons, Greece, and make you like a warrior’s sword. v. 11-13. And the ultimate fulfillment yet to be…Then the Lord will appear over them; His arrow will flash like lightning. The Sovereign Lord will sound the trumpet; He will march in the storms of the south, and the Lord Almighty will shield them. They will destroy and overcome with slingstones. They will drink and roar as with wine; they will be full like a bowl used for sprinkling the corners of the altar. The Lord their God will save His people on that day as a shepherd saves his flock. They will sparkle in His land like jewels in a crown. How attractive and beautiful they will be! Grain will make the young men thrive, and new wine the young women. v. 14-17. The notes below pointed out how from a distance mountains can appear close together; only by traversing in and around them can we truly see how massive they are in size and distance. So it is with prophecy. We condense sentences together that in real time are ages apart. And then we project that onto the times we live in now and wonder why it doesn’t fit. Creator God sees all of eternity. He sees all of the messiness and pain in all of His children in every age, and does not turn away. Just as His words have been fulfilled, so they will be yet in the fullness of His timing. The amazing thing is, as you begin to walk with Him and learn from Him, what you will find is that Creator God IS what we long for. Not the words we put into His mouth, but His love in us, the hope of glory.